黒い月
by why-you-no-real
Summary: Everything has been a lie until now. Ichigo and Shiro have lived their lives thinking that their father was a traveling physician- a peaceful yet adventurous life. But unbeknownst to them, things were about to change drastically. Truths will be revealed and their true lineage will present itself in a grimly manner. By blood, they belonged to a Creed. [Rated M for violence/lang.]


Florence, Italy, 1476. A young boy of the ripe age of seventeen rose from his bed to stretch, the early morning light that filtered into his room had awoken him. With slow and clumsy movements, Kurosaki Ichigo stumbled across the room to another bed where his brother was still asleep, evident from his light snoring. A scowl crossed over Ichigo's lips, but was quickly replaced with a smirk when he spotted their pet cat, Kuro, atop their dresser. He strode over to pick up the finicky feline and returned to the side of the bed before lifting the cat and dropping it on his brother's face. The cat reacted just as he had hoped by extending its claws to brace for its fall. With a sudden howl, the other boy immediately sprang up and nearly threw the hissing cat across the room. Instead, his shock and anger was redirected at the perpetrator.

"What the hell, Ichi!" Ichigo laughed and responded by poking his brother's forehead.

"Time to wake up, Shiro." Shiro rubbed his forehead and pouted, a glare still prominent in his tired eyes. Huffing, he rolled out of bed and was about to pick a verbal fight when they heard their little sister, Yuzu, call for them.

"Ichi-nii! Shiro-nii! Breakfast is ready!" Shiro huffed and turned on his heel, grumbling curses under this breath as he made his way downstairs. Ichigo chuckled at his twin's temper. It was so easy to ruffle his feathers, how could one resist doing so?

This was the new life for the Kurosaki family. This wasn't their first fresh start as their father, Isshin, was a curious physician. The man loved nothing more than to span the globe, searching for and learning new medical techniques. Thus, traveling and living in foreign places was a regular process they underwent every few years. Except this time was different. Isshin had taken a vast liking to Florence and its people and planned on remaining in the culture-rich city for quite some time. Naturally, Ichigo and his other siblings were instructed to "get comfortable and make friends". Not a hard thing to do, right? Wrong. The first year had been nothing but trouble as they were quite obviously **not** Italian. Or even European for that matter. And being a vibrant orange head didn't help either. Nonetheless, the townsfolk had slowly began to accept them as fellow neighbors once Isshin's skills as a reliable and skilled doctor became clear. Nowadays, they received many visits from the poor all the way up to the most prominent political figures.

As the boys entered the dining room, they were immediately and unpleasantly greeted with an attempted running hug from their father. "Ichigoooooo~! Shirooooo~" the man cooed loudly with outstretched arms for his beloved sons. The two boys rolled their eyes and quickly stepped to the side, causing their absurd father to slam headfirst into the wall. He pouted and feigned extreme sadness at his sons' "lack of affection" and began spewing all kind of obnoxious things. It didn't last long though, as their second sister, Karin, snapped at the man.

"Urusei, otoosan! It's too early for your nonsense," the raven-haired girl shot with an annoyed glare. Honestly, why did this guy have to be so immature. The sharp demand did its job as Isshin whimpered and went to express his "sadness" to a portrait painting of their deceased mother, Kurosaki Misaki. With a sigh, Ichigo took a seat at the table followed by Shiro. The brothers didn't get to finish eating though when Karin approached the orange head with a long piece of folded parchment.

"Yuzu and I have to stay here and prepare for important guests today. I need you to take care of these things in a somewhat timely manner. And take Shiro with you, he'll do nothing but cause trouble here," the young girl ordered, holding the list to her brother's face. He scowled and took the paper, not bothering to look at it just yet. It was meager chores no doubt. The eldest brother shot a look at the white-haired teen seated next to him, only to earn a sarcastic "fun" in return. Finishing their morning meal of goat cheese and various fruits, they rose form their seats and headed out of the house to start another day in Florence.

Once outside the residence, Ichigo retrieved the list from his pocket and read each item carelessly. A frown developed as he read on: _"Pick up liver from butcher….Go to market and buy….Assist Madame Isabelle's husband with fixing their roof…." _Oh? The last task had Ichigo flashing a wide smirk at Shiro.

"Oi. Guess where we have to go?" he taunted in a sing song voice as he waved the paper in Shiro's face. The younger brother rose an eyebrow and snatched the paper from his grasp. He briefly scanned it with a calm countenance until his eyes fell on what the orange head referred to. He clicked his tongue and shoved the list back to him.

"I ain't goin there," he snapped gruffly.

"Don't be such a child. Her father- a very renowned surgeon who assisted our father greatly, I remind you- has graciously offered up his materials. Besides, I'll need your help with the boxes," he chided. The scolding went unanswered, but the teen followed Ichigo down the crowded streets nonetheless.

The Florentine streets were already buzzing with activity as the people went about their daily duties and routines. Dogs barked after cats, chickens clucked about and dodged people's feet, guards were patrolling their routes. The loud, exuberant voices of men running street-side shops could be heard among the bustle of other sounds, each trying their best to catch the attention of those who passed by. The teens went down the list and made their rounds, fulfilling each task fairly quickly. By the time noon came around, their arms were full with produce bags, sacks of meat, and empty money pouches.

They had remained mostly silent the entire time save for a few taunts and jabs at each other, until Shiro spoke up form behind the bags in his arms.

"Ichi, we should drop these off at home before we make the last stop," the white-haired teen suggested. The orange head shook his head and replied, "Nah, it's just a couple streets away. It would be redundant and a waste of time to go all the way home and then back again. Your just trying to delay us going there." Ichigo gave his brother an amused smirk. Shiro scowled and retorted with mumbled insults. Ichigo merely rolled his brown eyes at his immaturity. As he had said, he wasn't long before they arrived at their final stop- the residence of Andrea Vesalio, a wise physician and scientist known for his studies in human anatomy.

Like their own family, Vesalio was not a Florentine; he was born in Brussels, Belgium. Regardless, he knew what it was like to be a newcomer at one point in time and, after a scholarly meeting, became a close colleague of Isshin. But Andrea and Isshin weren't the only ones in the two families to become close. Vesalio's well-endowed daughter, Anne, took a quick liking to Shiro for reasons Ichigo failed to see or understand. Of course, Shiro had no objections and had always been a charmer with the girls. His exotic white hair and vivid golden eyes drew their attention from a mile away, a fact the local fathers hardly appreciated. Ichigo often received the same treatment from woman, but unlike his brother, never took advantage of them nor accepted their offered affections. It was this lewd habit of Shiro's that had turned Anne against him after a mere month. Ichigo couldn't and wouldn't blame her. In fact, he had found it all too amusing when Shiro had finally gotten what was coming to him- a slap to that pretty little face of his.

Ichigo shifted his bags to one arm and knocked on the door, flashing his brother a warning glance to behave. Moments later, they heard rustling on the other side before it was quickly opened and they were greeted with the cheery disposition of Andrea.

"Ah! It's Isshin's boys! Welcome, welcome! I've been expecting you. Please, come in and you can set those things here," the middle-aged man pointed to a spot near the door. The boys gratefully obliged, their arms having become a little sore from the heavy load. "Now then, I won't waste much of your time. I'll go get those documents and supplies your father requested," Vesalio said before departing the room. Ichigo replied with a curt nod and took a seat to wait. Shiro remained standing and seemingly on edge. Being in this house was surely uncomfortable for him. Ichigo lightly chuckled, highly amused at the expression on his brother's face.

"Relax, why don't you? Anne isn't the type to hold a grudge, especially since she gave you your due," he remarked in a mocking tone. Shiro shot a harsh glare but said nothing, knowing what his brother said was true. Turning his attention away from the other teen, Ichigo occupied himself by observing the main entry room.

The fact that this was the home of a anatomical scientist was all too obvious. Instead of the normal home decor such as beautiful paintings or Greece sculptures, there were medical clay models adorning the shelves and small tables. A bookshelf across the room was filled to the brim with encyclopedias, biographies of past, renown scientists, and medical journals. It somewhat interested the orange head, but he had never intended to follow the same path as his father. Isshin knew it and had never shown any disappointment towards that resolve.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard someone coming down the stairs. He stood, anticipating it to be Andrea but was surprised to see that it was another. It was a lanky, beady-eyed man whose dark brown hair reached the bottom of his ears. His attire was clearly that of a wealthy Florentine, and his wrists and neck were strung with gold and silver. When the stranger saw Ichigo and Shiro, his nose crinkled in what appeared to be disdain. He said nothing as he headed straight to the door and left. Shiro rose an eyebrow and glanced at the now closed door, then at Ichigo.

"What the hell was that guy's problem?" he growled, not appreciating the look they had received one bit. Ichigo narrowed his eyes and replied, "Stick up his ass probably." Shiro chuckled and looked back at the stairs to see Vesalio returning. The man was struggling to carry four stacked boxes and the two boys rushed over to relieve him of them. Andrea flashed them a grateful smile and said, "This should be all of it. If Isshin needs anything else, don't be shy to ask." The brothers nodded but then exchanged concerned glances with another, as if silently discussing something. Vesalio caught this and his lips turned down in a worried frown.

"Is there something wrong, boys?"

Ichigo was the first to speak. "Well, we were wondering who that other man was. He left shortly before you came back down. He seemed a bit…"

"…like an asshole," Shiro finished his thought for him, just put a little more crudely than intended by the orange head.

Vesalio's countenance immediately grew sullen and his eyes were cast downward. He hesitated before answering," That was an associate of Francesco de' Pazzi. A few months ago, I had borrowed money from one of his banks in order to fund my research. Strangely enough, he had offered me a great deal more than the Medici. I should've known better," his voice lowered but he quickly shook his head. "But no matter! I would certainly not wish to involve your family!" He exclaimed with another warm smile, only this one wasn't genuine like the others. Ichigo frowned deeply but didn't pry any further. It wasn't their business and any meddling could result in further predicaments for their friend. After a nod and thank you, Ichigo turned and left.

They had only taken a few steps from the door when Shiro had started to rant. "Why on earth would Vesalio do business with a crook like that? Francesco's nothing but a snake, and his son's a dick. Pussy too. Throws a fit like an infant when he doesn't get his way." Ichigo was too engrossed in his own thoughts to answer Shiro's remarks. But why did he accept de' Pazzi's offer? Vesalio was a smart man and knew just as well as any other poor or middle-class family that the man couldn't be trusted. There's no way such an intelligent and good-hearted man would accept money from such a hateful snake. Something else was brewing here and Ichigo wanted to know what.


End file.
